Can I make this work?

[clove_23]

Hi,

I have been looking to buy a welder and have come across a nice used LX 235 AC/160 DC. I want to be able to use it on the jobsite to weld steel posts to i-beams, and to tack weld the steel joist shoes to the top of the i-beam(s). I don't need to weld anything that would exceed 3/8" thickness. Because I want to use it on the jobsite, I need to be portable, and therefore need to run it off a generator.

Question: I have two generators, one is a 4400W DeWalt with a 120/240V 20Amp twist lock (not big enough I would think), the other is a Coleman 6750W with a 120/240V 30A twist lock. Will I be able to use either of these or am I going down the wrong road here? IF so, any suggestions as to what else I might look for?

Thanks,
Chris

[DrIQ]

Most of the machines in that range draw close to 50 amps at the rated output which would be roughly 12,000 watts.

[MAC702]

You'll be able to pull 28A out of the Coleman at most. This will probably be sufficient to run your welder at enough amps to get the job done, if there were no other options.

[Sberry]

With the cost of copper what it is I would be looking at a Miller Maxstar, easy on the power, 20A service and weighs 13 pounds. Carry a number 10 or 12 cord instead of heavy leads.

[Sberry]

Mac, I have put meters to machines in this class, between 38 and 43 amps depending on settings.

[Knowledgeworker]

I have the same welder. I tried using it with a 6300 watt generator, and had no luck with it. When arc first struck, it pulled the generator down and kicked the breaker before I could get a good bead going. I was using 1/8 inch 7018 Hobart rods on 1/4 inch plate. Works great when plugged to AC, but no luck when using generator less than 10000 watts. 10000 watt generator will still not allow you to use the welder on medium-heavy work.

I hope you have better luck. If you do, please post what you did. I would like to have some portability with my welder.

Jim

[mooseye]

this is a little off topic, but...
I have used my mm250 quite a bit plugged into a ranger8 which I think translates to around 37 amps on 230v. It ran fine and never tripped any breaker. (I wonder what the sacreligious implications are from plugging blue into red?) The MM250 calls for a 50amp breaker but I think the only way it would pull that much is if it were wide open and shorted out.
I would like to hear if anyone has ever checked to see if one of these portable generators is acctually putting out the watts claimed since I hear you guys saying that the 4500 to 6000 range won't cut it.

[MAC702]

Good to know the real world applications. I didn't know if the losses would be that high, but apparently, they are.

Get a good engine-driven welder, or an inverter like the Maxstar!

Some jobs just can't be done with what you've got lying around...

[Sberry]

I have metered 250 class feeders, 38 is a pretty good number with 035 wire, yes, it should run from the Ranger. This is the type of application the Maxstars were made for, it would run from the little gen sets the original poster has.

[Broccoli1]

Hi,

I have been looking to buy a welder and have come across a nice used LX 235 AC/160 DC. I want to be able to use it on the jobsite to weld steel posts to i-beams, and to tack weld the steel joist shoes to the top of the i-beam(s). I don't need to weld anything that would exceed 3/8" thickness. Because I want to use it on the jobsite, I need to be portable, and therefore need to run it off a generator.

Question: I have two generators, one is a 4400W DeWalt with a 120/240V 20Amp twist lock (not big enough I would think), the other is a Coleman 6750W with a 120/240V 30A twist lock. Will I be able to use either of these or am I going down the wrong road here? IF so, any suggestions as to what else I might look for?

Thanks,

Chris

According to Lincoln the Stick machines don't work off the gensets- Even though the Math does- due to the way the transformer is built. You would need a 12,500 watt genset. I have the Link around here somewhere.

[Broccoli1]

this is a little off topic, but...
I have used my mm250 quite a bit plugged into a ranger8 which I think translates to around 37 amps on 230v. It ran fine and never tripped any breaker. (I wonder what the sacreligious implications are from plugging blue into red?) The MM250 calls for a 50amp breaker but I think the only way it would pull that much is if it were wide open and shorted out.
I would like to hear if anyone has ever checked to see if one of these portable generators is acctually putting out the watts claimed since I hear you guys saying that the 4500 to 6000 range won't cut it.

4500 to 6000 won't work for a Stick machine but would probably run your MM250 to a certain point as a 6000 w genset is only going to provide 25amps at 240v and realistically it is probably rated at 5000w running.

[Knowledgeworker]

I have used my HH180 (mig) with a 5000 watt generator without any problems; however, I didn't use it (the HH180) to the maximum capability. I have also used my Miller Spectrum 625 plasma cutter with the same generator, again, without using it to its maximum capabilty. But my Hobart LX235 AC/160 DC (stick) was too much for both the 5000 watt and 6300 watt generators.

Jim

[delwelds]

I have used the exact same machine and and ran it with a wacker 10,000 watt gen with a 30amp circuit and it would strike an arc, but was a lot of trouble to keep established with 3/32" 7018 on 1/4" plate with the aperage maxed out. Also tried it on AC with 3/32" 6011 and neither was really sufficient. I ended up heating the part up sufficiently and finally got it welded with the 7018. The picece is still stuck together today so it worked well enough. However, I would not suggest that you use it on anything structural or anything that will receive a heavy load.
wade

[Sberry]

All the effort would be better spent finding an engine drive sufficient to do the job, if I had the genset and could take any advantage of line power a Max star would be my choice without a second thought, about 700 street price and it weighs 13#, the cost of cords, leads in comparison, heavy electric service, all makes it dam near a no brainer and worth putting on a charge card if I needed it.

[Mark-in-Mo]

I have the maxstar 150s it is a nice unit, kinda looks like a toy with its small size. I have not used it yet on a generator much less 220 but I can tell ya on 110 it runs 6011,6013,7014 really nice

[clove_23]

Thanks all for the suggestion of the Maxstar 150...this indeed looks like a nice alternative. So here's my dilema...the Coleman genset just died a week or so ago, leaving me with only the Dewalt 4400. It has surge watts in excess of 15,000. Do you think the Maxstar would run ok off of it? If I went to use the 240V outlet, I would need to get an adapter to plug into the L14-20R, as the Maxstar has a 6-50P. Are there adapters available, and would the 240V be ok? Sorry for all the newbie questions, but I am just starting to get into welding. :o Thanks.

Chris

[Broccoli1]

You'll have to make yer own Pig Tail cord.

[Zrexxer]

Something like this:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v58/Zrexxer/Forums/Cord.jpg